Langford, Banic lead Unics to road win in Bucharest

Unics Kazan took a very important step forwards in Group D by downing Steaua CSM EximBank Bucharest 71-88 in the Romanian capital on Wednesday. Unics improved to 4-2 to keep leading the standings while Steaua dropped to 2-4. Keith Langford led the winners with 23 points and 8 rebounds. Marko Banic added 19 points on 9-of-10 two-point shots, Artsiom Parakhouski had 13 and 12 rebounds in less than 19 minutes while Kostas Kaimakoglou got 12 points and 9 rebounds for Unics. Bill Amis led Steaua with 14 points. Gerald Lee added 12, Marko Marinovic had 11 while Denis Ikovlev got 10 for the hosts. Lee shined early to make Steaua get a double-digit lead, 15-5. Banic and Kaimakoglou allowed Unics to get within 25-21 after 10 minutes. Parakhouski had 8 points in a 1-10 run which put Unics ahead for good, 30-34. Langford and Banic made Unics get a double-digit lead, 38-48, at halftime. Nothing changed after the break, as Unics boosted its margin to 47-60 soon after the break and then again to 63-82 midway through the fourth quarter, enough to seal the outcome.

Lee got Steaua going with a layup, igniting a 9-0 opening run in which Ikovlev had 5 points. Unics called timeout and Langford found his first points but Amis dunked for an 11-2 Steaua lead. Kaimakoglou shined with a tip-in but back-to-back layups by Lee made it a double-digit game, 15-5. Banic and Langford stepped up for Unics and a three-pointer by Kaimakoglou brought Unics within 15-11. Lee hit a jump hook but Banic and Valery Likhodey kept the guests as close as 19-17. Pankracije Barac made free throws, Langford scored again and Nicoara restored a 23-19 Steaua lead. Banic and Aleksandar Rasic traded layups for a 25-21 score after 10 minutes. Parakhouski made free throws early in the second quarter but Nicoara and Rasic kept Steaua way ahead, 29-24. Unics kept running its offense through an unstoppable Parakhouski, who had 8 points in a 1-10 run which Banic capped with a layup for a 30-34 lead. Chris Copper and Rasic stepped up for the hosts but Banic and Quino Colom boosted the guests' lead to 34-40. Amis shined with a three-point play, Colom struck from downtown and Langford gave Unics its first double-digit lead, 38-48, at halftime.

Amis scored immediately after the break but Kaimakoglou did even better with a three-point play, good for a 40-51 Unics margin. Ikovlev and Lee stepped up for Steaua but a three-pointer by Langford kept his team way ahead, 45-54. Amis scored again but Banic, Colom and Langford led a 0-6 run which forced the hosts to call timeout at 47-60. Rasic fed Ionut Dragusin for a close basket and Marinovic ignited the crowd with consecutive three-pointers but Langford and Colom kept their team way ahead, 56-65. Nicoara and Banic exchanged baskets for a 58-67 score after three quarters. Kaimakoglou struck from downtown early in the fourth quarter and Anton Ponkrashov made it a 14-point game, 58-72. Marinovic hit another three-pointer and Amis scored again but Steaua only managed to trade baskets now. Meanwhile, Langford and Banic remained unstoppable and allowed Unics to seal the outcome, 63-82, with under 6 minutes left. Steaua never gave up but Unics cruised to a well-deserved, pivotal road win

Head Coaches

SAPERA, HRISTU

Steaua CSM EximBank Bucharest

"We couldn’t maintain the rhythm for 40 minutes. In the second quarter we lost the fight on rebounds and I think that made the difference. We need to be more focused and motivated in games like this. We played well in the first quarter, but we allowed points too easily. We need to play better in defense if we want to use our chances in the upcoming games."

PASHUTIN, EVGENY

Unics Kazan

"With this win, we reacted to the lost game in Moscow in the VTB League. We played much better in defense and our players helped each other to play a good contact game. We came back from the bad start, we rebounded well and we scored a lot on fast breaks. I think the key was that we came here with very good morale. Now we have to think about the next game, because we need to fight until the end and we need a win there."

Players

AMIS, BILL

Steaua CSM EximBank Bucharest

"We didn’t played well on defense in the second quarter and with a strong team like Unics, you can’t make mistakes like that. I think we need at least two more wins to get out of this group, but considering we are the underdogs of the group, we need to go out there and play
like there is nothing to lose."

LANGFORD, KEITH

Unics Kazan

"It is important that we won. We had a very high morale because we wanted to get rid of the bad taste after the CSKA Moscow loss in the VTB League."